A Sound, A Song
by ToothPasteCanyon
Summary: The emergence of the Cluster is long overdue, and the Diamonds are starting to suspect something is up. With an acceptable amount of humans in the Human Zoo and the fears of another dreaded rebellion rearing its head, they launch an attack. A bright light streams from the sky, a strange song sings across the land… and just like that, Steven is left with nothing. Peridot, too.
1. Chapter 1

Roses were blooming around Rose's former home. Sunflowers swayed in the ocean breeze, kept in pretty pots on the beach house's deck. Underneath it little tomato sprouts had been planted in the dirt, green and healthy. A small, furry cactus sat on the guard rails. A pumpkin danced around Peridot as she went around, watering them all.

That was the sight Steven was greeted with when he went outside. He rubbed his eyes, partly from him only just waking up and partly from amazement. "Wow, Peridot. This looks even better than it did yesterday!"

Peridot grinned back at him. "I know! This place has vastly improved since I moved in here, don't you think?"

"It has." Steven looked at the pots. "Hey, look, me and Amethyst's drawings came out pretty well! This one's my favourite."

"Hmmm… What is it supposed to be again?"

"It's a guitar playing itself! I was kinda experimenting, you know? Dad tells me you've always gotta try new things." He started down the stairs. "Aaand, speaking of Dad, come with me!"

"What? Why?"

"Come on, you'll see!"

Peridot looked from her garden to Steven. "Well, I suppose I've already watered the plants… okay. Pumpkin, stay! I hand over supervision of the garden to you!"

Pumpkin wagged her tail and barked as the two started off towards town.

* * *

"Remind me again why we're walking around Funland. This part doesn't even have any rides."

Steven laughed and pulled her along. "Peridot, this isn't a part of Funland! It's Beach City. We're going to my dad's carwash; we've got a surprise for you!"

"A surprise? I suppose this should be interesting. What is it?"

"Haha, I'm not gonna tell you! That's the point of a surprise!" They came into view of the carwash, and Steven stopped and took a deep breath. "DAAAAAD!"

"Whoa!" Greg jumped up from his chair. "Oh, hey, Steven! You scared me there. And, uh, hey, Peridot! Long time no see."

Peridot looked up. "Still looking good."

"What?"

"Your sign. That we made for you. You're welcome, by the way."

"Oh, yeah, thanks again!" Greg grinned. "Looks way better than my old one. It's really been bringing in the customers, I think."

"Dad!" Steven sidled up to him. "Do you remember our… surprise?"

"Oh, yeah!" Greg jumped up and dove into his van, tossing stuff around in his search. "I know I put it here somewhere… Steven told me you've been, uh, living with him recently, and you took up gardening! Says the house looks way better now it's covered in flowers. So, he asked me to go out and order this for you!" He turned around, brandishing a pair of rubber boots. "Tah-dah!"

Peridot took them with some hesitation. "Wow, thanks? What are these, Steven?"

"They're welly boots! Or, if you wanna be fancy, Wellington boots. Look, they're green with stars on them; I saw them online, and I thought of you! They're for gardening, and-and having fun in the rain! Go on, put'em on!"

"Oh!" She looked at them with a little more interest. "So, they're like clothes you put on… for gardening?"

Greg scratched the back of his head. "I suppose you could call them that."

"I happen to like both of those hobbies!" She put them on, and stomped a few times on the wet pavement. "Nyahaha! I'm still dry! It works!"

"Huh. I'm glad you like them so much."

"And they have stars on them! This is perfect!" With a grin, Peridot kicked some water on Steven.

"Haha, hey!" Steven picked up a hose. "Are you tryna get into a water fight?"

"With these water-proof boots, I'll win!"

"Oh, really?" Steven pointed the hose and splashed her. "I challenge you!"

Greg stepped back. "Watch out, Peridot. Steven's pretty good at this game!"

"Nyahaha! Game? This is no game," She picked up a hose. "This is war!"

Laughing, the two chased each other around the car wash, getting progressively more soaked in the process. Eventually, the two tired out and flopped down on the concrete, feeling the warm summer sun beat down on them.

"Whoa," Greg took a seat in the back of his van. "I'm gonna have a massive water bill this month, aren't I?"

"Oh, sorry Dad!"

"Don't worry about it, Schtu-ball! You two looked like you were having fun! Besides, I'm rich." He smiled at Peridot. "So, I take it you like your present?"

Peridot nodded. "It was very useful in the battle. Unfortunately, it seems to be less waterproof on the inside. Maybe an entire suit constructed out of this material would be even more helpful."

"And it'd protect against lightning! And lasers! Pshoo, shoo shoo!"

"Hmm…" Peridot looked up at the sky, thinking. Her eyes looked up at the clouds, at the seagulls flying past, and settled on the carwash sign. She remembered that adventure, and how she, Pumpkin, Lapis and Connie spent days working on making a new one after they broke the original. That was fun… but now she was remembering it again, it suddenly seemed a little bittersweet.

Peridot felt the water gently running down the driveway. Lapis.

"Hey, Peridot, are you okay?" A hand on her shoulder. She looked over to see Steven, with a worried smile on his face. "You spaced out a second there."

Peridot shrugged him off. "I'm okay. I was just… thinking."

"Do you wanna talk about it? It's okay if you don't."

Peridot looked down at her rubber boots. "No… I don't. Want to talk about it, I mean. Not right now."

"Oh, okay." After a moment, Steven looked back up at his dad. "So… how's your day going?"

Greg blinked. "Oh, me? Yeah, um, I've been doing… carwash stuff. I ordered replacements for a bunch of my brushes, so they'll be coming in next week. Wanna help your old man install them?"

"Did you get them from that guy in Keystone again?"

"Nah… still not going back there. Not anywhere near that motel, or that diner. Hoo boy." Greg shuddered as he looked up at the sky. "I found someone else who'll just ship it to me-eee! What the hay is that?!"

"What's what?" Steven sat up, and noticed the carwash, the concrete, the colours on the van, everything was getting brighter, more vivid. He followed his father's gaze to see something in the sky. An airplane? An explosion? No, it was more like a light, a white, blue, and yellow light shining brighter than the sun.

He squinted. It almost looked like that thing from Lapis's-

Then he heard it; a song. Steven didn't know how to describe the feeling it gave him; it was like everything he ever did was going to come to nothing, everyone he ever knew was going to die and leave him. All his old insecurities flared up, too; he wasn't Rose Quartz. He'd never learn to control his powers. He'd hurt so many people, and it _was all his fault_. One second in, and he shaking from the mental anguish, crying like he was in the presence of Blue Diamond.

"Steven? What's going on? What's the matter?"

The son seemed to rise in pitch and intensity, and Steven could only hug his Dad, who squeezed him back.

"Hey, hey. I'm here, Steven." He looked around, completely confused. "Is this some sort of Gem thing? What's the matter with Peridot?"

Peridot? Steven – still shaking, still sobbing, but alert now – looked over at her. Everything was so bright now, but he could see her clearly. She was lying face down on the wet driveway, limbs splayed, hands twitching and clenching, legs jerking and kicking. As he watched, her very form glitched, and the colours of her uniform started to bleed into one another.

"Peridot!" Steven ran to her, hearing the song grow still more intense, still more painful. With it came what almost seemed like voices, messages for him, intertwined with the notes. _You can't save her_ , it told him. He looked up at the sky again, and suddenly, he knew what was happening.

A yellow, blue and white light, spreading across the sky like from Lapis' flashback. Damage from the Diamonds.

 _You can't save anyone_. They were being corrupted.

"Steven?" Greg was looking at that light too, hearing that song but feeling no effect. "What do we do?"

Rose Quartz had saved them before. He had her gem – _You're not her, you're too weak_ \- She saved Garnet and Pearl – _They hate you for replacing her_ – with her… with her… Shield!

He summoned his shield and pointed it at the light. Almost instantly, the tune died away; the feelings it summoned up within him were still raw, but at least he could think straight without the constant interference from – _You'll never escape_.

Oh-kay. Just don't think about it. Don't think about the song…

 _The Earth will be destroyed. You're going to die alone._

Steven clenched his fists. "Stop saying that!"

"Steven?" He looked over to see his Dad, clearly confused, trying and failing to keep the panic out of his voice.

"I-it's okay, Dad, I'm okay."

"Phew, good." He seemed to calm down, but still looked a little uneasy as he pointed at a figure by Steven's feet. "What about Peridot?"

Peridot. With a jolt of fear, he positioned his shield so it was floating in the air and kneeled down next to her. She had stopped twitching, but now she wasn't moving at all, even when she shook her.

"Peridot?" Carefully, Steven rolled her over until her head was in his lap. Her eyes were staring out into space, glassy and unfocused. He waved a hand in front of them. "Peridot, come on! Snap out of it!"

Her form glitched again, the bleeding effect in her clothes growing to resemble scales. Steven licked his hand and pressed it on her gem, hoping, praying, begging that this would be enough.

Behind them, the song reached a crescendo, and his shield shook under the pressure of such a powerful onslaught of magic. The light stretched from horizon to horizon, bathing the ground in such intense brightness Greg had to shut his eyes before it blinded him.

And on Peridot's gemstone, the healing glow came, lingered, and then faded. For one awful moment Steven thought it was too late, but then her form flickered back to normal. She blinked, and the awful glassy stare left her gaze. She focused on him.

"St-steven?" Peridot raised an eyebrow when he wrapped her in a bonecrushing hug. "Why are you hugging me?"

The light was fading away as Steven spoke. "I'm so glad you're okay, Peridot! I think that was the corrupting thing from the Diamonds, and-and you weren't moving, and... but I healed you!"

Peridot stared blankly at him, the cogs in her head turning just a tad slower than normal. Finally, it registered. "Corruption?" She jumped up with a little squeak, looking herself over. "I'm okay? I mean, of course I'm okay. Peridots are very durable, you know."

Still, she felt a little uneasy, a little… strange. It was like there was something in the back of her mind she wasn't remembering.

There came a little tap on Steven's shield. "Uhh, Steven, I dunno what that thing was, but it's gone now. I can't hear it anymore."

"Thanks, Dad." Steven dissipated his shield. "Are you doing okay?"

Greg blinked a few times. "I'm seeing the driveway when I close my eyes, but other than that I'm fine. Sheesh, that was bright. What was that?"

Steven helped Peridot to her feet. Corruption, he had said. It was like a bright light, and a scream… she didn't remember anything past that.

"I think the Diamonds just attacked Earth." Steven suddenly grabbed his dad's shoulder. "Garnet, Amethyst and Pearl! We've gotta find them!"

"Y-yeah, that sounds like a good idea. Hop in the van, I'll give you a ride back home."

A scream… a sound. Peridot rubbed her temples. It was sorta coming back to her…

"They said they were out on a mission. Maybe… they're on the other side of the world and the song didn't hit them?"

A song.

"I hope-" Greg cut himself off when Steven staggered and pressed his hands to his forehead. "Whoa! You doing okay, bud? Maybe we should take a breather after all that. You don't look all that good."

 _A song._

"No, it's okay. I just have to… not think about it. It's the tune, it's like a super catchy song on the radio, but every time it plays in my head it hurts. I guess this is what Centipeedle felt like… poor Centi. I hope she's okay." Steven turned to Peridot. "Oh, yeah, um, try not to think about it? I'm a half-Gem, so it's probably not as bad for me as it is for… Peridot?"

Like a blister popping in her mind, she remembered the song. It wasn't playing outside anymore, but in her head, over and over and over, each time bringing with it a fresh wave of agony.

Peridot dropped to her knees, clutching at her gem.

"Peridot? Peridot!" Steven caught her before she went headfirst into the concrete. "Please, don't think about it! Think about… something else! Camp Pining Hearts? Pumpkin? Um, um, what about this again?"

He licked his hand and put it on her gemstone; the pain faded a bit, but it was still playing in her head. The more she tried not to think about it, the louder it got.

"It's not working!"

"You said this was like getting a song stuck in your head?" Greg snapped his fingers. "Hold on, I've got an idea."

Steven watched as he ran to the van, brought out his guitar and slung it around his neck. "Here goes nothing!" He said as he started to play the catchiest riff he could think of off the top of his head.

"You hear that, Peridot?" Steven asked, and she listened… it was quite catchy. Her head started to clear, bit by bit.

After a moment, she sat up. "I… think I'm fine now. Thank you, Steven's Dad."

"Yeah, Dad, good thinking!"

Greg kept strumming. "Are you sure you're gonna be okay?"

"I had… no idea the effects were so powerful. That was…" Peridot kneaded her forehead for a moment, and then moved to pick up her tablet. "I… think I have an idea, though. I have some of my music on my… my tablet."

She tapped it, and some country music came on.

Steven helped her up again. "Yeah, that sounds good! Come on, let's get in the van!"

Peridot let herself be led into the front seat, and Steven sat in the back. As the van started, he thought about Garnet, Amethyst and Pearl. His family was in danger, and it was up to him to save them.

 _You won't succeed_ , said the voice of the song. Steven hoped it was wrong.


	2. Chapter 2

Halfway across town, Peridot sat up in realization. "Pumpkin!"

Greg frowned. "Who?"

"He's Peridot's pet pumpkin. Don't worry, Peridot, I'm sure he's fine."

"You really think so?"

"Yeah I do! Look, I'm sure everyone's super worried about family right now, but… we're gonna find them! Starting with Pumpkin."

"Hmm. Thank you, Steven. Your optimistic speech has made me feel marginally better about this situation." One song ended on her tablet, and she rapidly tapped it until the next one came on. "Only marginally, though. This is still objectively terrible."

"Yeah," Greg looked over at the boardwalk, where people were milling about, looking at the sky. "I hope everyone in town's alright. That was one bright flash."

They left the road, and started driving on the sand. Steven frowned as he looked out the side window; he couldn't see the house yet, but there were things floating in the water. A soggy blanket was washed up against the coastline, and after a second he recognized it.

It was his blanket. From his bed. What was it doing out here?

"Uh, guys?" Steven leaned forwards. "Something's not right."

Peridot crossed her arms. "I no longer feel marginally better about this situation."

"What's the matter, Schtu-Ball? Should we turn back?"

"I… I don't know." They were finally rounding the bend, and he pointed. "Look!"

Where the house used to be was a mess of shredded planks, out of which poured a junkyard-sized pile of random objects extending all the way into the sea, where some were washed away.

Steven gasped. "My home!"

"My garden!"

"Is that… some of the stuff from my old storage shed?" Greg parked the van. "What the heck happened here?"

Immediately, Peridot jumped out and ran towards the pile shouting, "Pumpkin! Pumpkin, where are you? _Pumpkin_!" She reached it and started digging through the debris.

Steven tried not to look at what had become of his house. Instead, he focused on the pile. "You're right, Dad. That looks like stuff from Amethyst's room."

"Why's it all out here, though?"

"I don't know. Maybe the corruption song damaged the Temp-" He winced in pain. "Maybe… it damaged the Temple?"

"Jeez, that thing really did a number on you, didn't it?" Greg put a hand on his son's shoulder. "Sorry, buddy. But hey, why don't I put the three of us up in a hotel while we figure this out?"

"Hey, Steven! Steven's Dad!" Peridot started backing away from the pile. "We have a problem!"

"What now?" Steven looked, and saw a part of the pile was shaking. One blue claw broke free, scattering more debris onto the beach.

Peridot ran to hide behind Steven. "Yikes! That's definitely not Pumpkin!"

He summoned his shield. Another claw rose up from the wreckage, and a familiar ice monster lifted itself out.

Greg's eyes bugged out. "Eep, Gem monster!"

"That creature is actually smaller than I expected. I could probably take him out with my metal powers, right Steven?"

The monster lurched closer, and Steven frowned. "You're the guy from the shooting star cave. Didn't we bubble you?"

His eye was drawn to the piles of junk lying on the beach. Piles of Amethyst's junk, from Amethyst's room. If everything in Amethyst's room was ejected into the beach, then… the same could've happened to the Bubble Room! All those corrupted Gems, painstakingly captured and gathered in one place over thousands of years…

Behind the ice monster, something else began stirring in the pile of junk, and a cat carrier tumbled down onto to the sand. Steven backed up quickly. "Guys, we've gotta go."

"What about my metal powers? There's more than enough in the pile to-"

"Don't touch the pile!" Steven threw his shield at the approaching monster, and it fell on its back. "Sorry, Peridot, but I think there's a lot of Gem monsters trapped in there. We've gotta warn the town!"

"What about Pumpkin?"

"Pumpkin…" Steven looked back and forth between Peridot and the van. At that moment, a white light bust forth from the junk and solidified into a big orange monster he'd never seen before. Though it had no eyes, it turned towards the van, snarling and bearing several rows of serrated white teeth.

Steven put a hand on Peridot's shoulder. "We need to leave, Peridot. We can't fight all the monsters that were put in the Bubble Room, not without Garnet, Amethyst and Pearl. But… we'll come back for Pumpkin. We'll find him, I promise."

She opened her mouth as if to argue, but, finding no words, sighed and let her shoulders slump. In a flat, defeated tone, she said, "Okay."

Steven made a face as they hopped into the van. "Alright, Dad, we're in."

"Seatbelts on?" Greg asked, and Peridot stared at him. "Sorry, force of habit. Let's get out of here!"

He floored the accelerator, and the van sped away as fast as its four wheels could take it. Steven put one hand on the door as they approached the town; as soon as they reached the pavement, he opened the door.

Some of the townspeople noticed him running towards them. "Steven?" Sadie said with a worried smile. "Hey there! You, uh, don't happen to know what that weird light was about, do you?"

"Everybody, I need your attention!" Steven spread his arms wide. "You need to evacuate!"

There was a gasp, and a people started talking amongst themselves.

"Evacuate?" Mr Fryman's eyes widened. "But what about my restaurant?"

"And mine, too! How soon do we need to leave?"

"Really quickly, actually!"

Mayor Dewey, now wearing a Big Doughnut employee shirt, spoke up. "What's going on? Is there another giant pointing hand?"

"No, no, it's these corrupted monsters."

Ronaldo crossed his arms. "So? Let the Crystal Gems deal with it, like they always do."

"The Crystal Gems… aren't here right now." Steven looked back at the van where Peridot sat, slumped in the seat, staring at her tablet. Greg was staring at the beach through his rear view mirror, hands tight on his steering wheel. "Look, I know everyone's kind of scared right now, and we don't know what to do. Everything got so messed up so quickly… but if we look out for each other, we'll pull through. We always have."

From amongst the crowd, Nanefua made her way to the front. "Steven, is this true? There are monsters coming to attack the city?"

"Yeah, it's true." A distant roar sounded from the beach, and he laughed nervously. "Haha, um, there's your proof."

She nodded. "I see. Then, as mayor of Beach City, I order an immediate, emergency evacuation! Stop standing around and get moving!"

"Thanks, Mayor Pizza."

"You're welcome. Now, what did I say? You need stop standing around, get in that van and drive to safety! Go!"


	3. Chapter 3

Cars poured out of Beach City all through the evening, filling the road to Ocean Town with more traffic than the quiet little road was equipped to handle. This wasn't helped by the sounds coming from the town as the sun went away: echoing roars and cries, snarls and wails with no way to gauge how close they truly were. The line was filled with panicked beeping and flashes of brake lights.

And right at the end in case of attack, the van.

"So," Greg said as the line grinded to a halt once again. "I guess we're going to the Keystone State after all. You two doing okay?"

Peridot said nothing; she was looking through her tablet, an orange and green glow lighting up her face in the dark.

"I'm okay," said Steven. "I hope all those Gem monsters are gonna be alright in Beach City. They sound really scared, being unbubbled after so long."

Greg allowed himself a little smile. "Just like your mother. Don't worry, Steven. Somehow, we'll get this whole mess sorted out."

In the front seat, Peridot scowled and turned up the music on her tablet.

"Yeah! We'll find Garnet, Amethyst and Pearl, and Pumpkin! It'll be like an adventure!"

"How exactly do you plan on doing that?"

Steven looked at Peridot. "Huh?"

"You said the Crystal Gems were out on a mission." Peridot didn't look up from her tablet as she spoke. "They could be anywhere on Earth. We have no way of contacting them, and, since the Temple is overrun, no convenient warp pad. We're never going to find any of them."

There was a short, stunned silence.

"Additionally, since the Temple is overrun, we'll never find Pumpkin. It's hopeless."

Steven cracked a smile. "C'mon, Peri-"

She slammed the tablet down on her lap. "No, you come on! I know you know it's not going to work, so stop trying to pretend it will! And now your home is destroyed, and my home is destroyed, and we'll never get it back! Never!"

Greg stared straight ahead, a bead of sweat running down his face. Country music blasted out of the tablet's speakers, so much so that Peridot could hardly hear herself think. That was a good thing; she didn't want to think.

"Peridot!" Steven called from the back, and she turned around to look at him. He wasn't smiling anymore. "Could you please turn that down a little? I need to talk to you."

She rolled her eyes and tapped the buttons a few times until she could hear him.

"Look, I… don't know how we're gonna find the Crystal Gems, and how we're gonna find Pumpkin. I don't know how we're gonna fix this mess. But you can't just give up! We've gotta try, Peridot."

"Yeah, try again. I'm sure that'll work."

"I know it's hard." He teared up. "I really miss them too, and I hope they're okay, but I don't know. I don't know where they are. But we're not gonna find them if we give up."

"Hmph." Peridot looked at Greg. "How far away is this Keystone State? Steven's Dad, how far is it?"

"Oh, right! In this traffic… well, it could take a while." He pressed the brakes as the car in front of him stopped, and shrugged. "But hey, maybe we could use that time to work out a game plan, or get some rest." He looked in his rearview mirror, eyebrows raised in concern. "You look exhausted, Steven."

Steven sank into his seat. "Steven is pretty exhausted." He yawned. "It'd be really nice to go to sleep. Sleep… sleep! Watermelon Stevens!"

Both Peridot and Greg turned around. "What?"

"That's how I can find Pumpkin!" Steven looked significantly less tired as he bounced in his seat. "Peridot, remember back with the drill, and Malachite, and-and I went to sleep and went into a Watermelon Steven? I bet I could do that with Pumpkin!"

Peridot blinked. "Umm…"

"Hold on, Pumpkin!" He practically flung himself across the back seats and shut his eyes. "I'm gonna find you. Just give me a few minutes to… start… yeah…"

And now he was snoring. Greg glanced at Peridot.

"Did you understand what he was talking about?"

She said nothing, having gone back to her tablet.

"Okay. I'll, um, keep driving, then." He tapped the accelerator as the line crawled forwards, privately noting to himself that this was almost as awkward as the time she pushed him off the roof.

Peridot snuck a glance at Steven, but he was almost impossible to see. It was well and truly dark out now, with not even a trace of where the sun had sunk below the horizon. At least the stars were pretty.

Then an earth-shaking roar came up from the direction of Beach City, and all the cars stopped and beeped. Greg slammed on the breaks, and she was jerked out of her seat.

"Sorry! Are you alright?"

"I'm fine." Peridot picked herself back up, and started hunting for where she'd dropped her tablet. It had to be down by her feet somewhere - judging by the country music - but it was so dark she couldn't see anything.

She leaned down closer to get a good look… and noticed the music had started to fade out. In just a few moments, it was gone.

"Huh?" Peridot sat up, only to see everything was getting brighter. "Steven? Steven's dad?"

She wasn't in the van anymore. She wasn't sitting anymore. She was standing, looking at where the barn used to be. There was still that huge hole where it'd been torn out of the ground, but it looked even worse. All around, the grass and the crops were dead and shriveled. The sky was cloudy and grey. Everything was just a little too bright, too quiet.

"Peridot?"

Peridot turned to see Steven standing behind him."Steven? What's going on?"

"Wait, you don't know?" He came closer. "Are you… real?"

"Am I real? What kind of a question is that? I was just talking to you in the van before you went to sleep."

"Oh, haha!" Steven blushed. "Sorry. I think I know what this is. I must've wandered into the wrong dream while I was looking for Pumpkin."

"You wandered into the wrong- huh? How did you do that?"

"I don't… really know?" He shrugged sheepishly. "I don't know how this power works; it's usually by accident. I guess I was just thinking about Pumpkin, and that made me think about you?"

"Oh, great. At this rate, we'll definitely find Pumpkin by the next Era."

Steven laughed nervously, looking around. "Haha, uh, yeah… what is this place, Peri?"

"It looks like the barn. Or at least, where the barn used to be." She clenched her fists. "Thanks for bringing me back here, by the way. I really needed the reminder."

Steven said nothing, but followed her as she walked over to sit on the edge of the crater.

"Aren't you supposed to be finding Pumpkin?"

"I don't really know how to get out of dreams. Usually I just wake up."

Peridot said nothing in reply, and Steven didn't attempt to fill the silence. They sat there for a time in the dead grass, no birds around to chirp, no wind to rustle the trees, no rain, no sun, no sound.

It was still a little too bright. She scowled to herself.

"Peridot?"

"What?"

"Are you okay?"

Peridot had another caustic remark lined up before he'd even finished his sentence, but as she turned to deliver it to him she noticed his face. All she could see was worry, written in every line of his face as he looked at her. All that sincerity, and she still felt so… angry.

Why was she so angry at him? Why was she so angry at everything?

Steven waited patiently as she sighed and tried to come up with an actual response. "Steven, it's… I just… everything is awful. Again."

She looked down at the crater, so massive, so empty. "On that train ride home after the Kindergarten, I thought I was finally had a home at the Temple, and it was actually pretty cool. I had Pumpkin, and the Shorty Squad, a garden with a little cactus, and it was great! I was feeling great, for once. But look how that turned out! And I know you'll say, 'Oh, Earth is always changing', but you know what? Sometimes I wish it didn't, because lately it's been changing for the worse! I-I wish I'd gone with Lapis! Maybe I'd be stuck on some remote rock with nothing but a barn and a TV and some meep morps for the rest of eternity, but at least I wouldn't be dealing with a Diamond attack!"

"Peridot-"

Everything was getting brighter, and she was getting angrier. "Don't interrupt me! What's the point of making a home, and putting time into it, and-and caring about it, when at any moment some ruddy muddy clod could- no, no, _will_ eventually come along and just rip it away from you? Why should I care about the Earth? Why should I care about anything!?"

"Peridot!"

"What!"

"Look at the sky!"

But she couldn't see the sky. She couldn't see Steven. Everything was bright, blinding-

And then it was fading, fading into darkness. She opened her eyes, and she saw the stars. Wind brushed against her face.

"Dad? Dad!"

"Steven! You're awake!"

"What happened?"

Peridot sat up, and the first thing she saw was the van, off the road and tipped on its side.

"I was driving when Peridot just passed out. I pulled off to the side to see if she was alright, but then the van started floating up into the air!"

"Is she okay? Where'd she go?"

She looked over at the two figures standing in the darkness. One of them switched on a flashlight, and pointed it in her direction.

She squinted. It was too bright.

"Peridot! There you are!" Steven ran to her, but then he stopped dead. The glow of his phone's flashlight illuminated his horrified expression. "Oh no, your arms…"

Peridot looked down. She saw her clothes, which had started to bleed and blend together. Little hard scales had formed in clusters on her arms, gleaming in the light.

Distantly, she knew this was bad. This wasn't supposed to happen. This wasn't what she was supposed to look like. But it at the same time, she just didn't feel as worried as she knew she should be. Her anger was gone, and now… nothing.

She looked back at Steven, wordlessly. He reached out and touched her shoulder.

"It's gonna be okay, Peri," He said, and he sounded worried. "I can heal you. Come on, let me help you up."


	4. Chapter 4

"Here we are!" Greg said as he pulled into a gas station. He looked back to ask if they wanted anything, but it was plain to see the question would go unanswered.

Steven was sleeping in the back, still trying to find this Pumpkin person he kept hearing about. Whatever he was up to, it didn't look like he was getting a good rest; he was frowning, and his arms – which had been wrapped around Peridot ever since they got on the road again – were tense. His fists were tightly clenched.

And Peridot? She was awake, and she was staring at him. Her eyes caught the dawn's light in an uncanny way, making them look bright and beady against the dim surroundings. Smaller pinpoints danced off the scales on her arm. She hadn't spoken since that… development.

He didn't really know what was going on there, but it was safe to assume she wasn't interested in snacks or soda.

Greg frowned as he opened the door. "I'll just be a minute."

He went around the back of his van, and dug out his guitar, a small amp and some other pieces of equipment.

"Greg?"

He jumped out his skin. "Wha- oh, hi Barb. Need something?"

Barb, who was filling up her car with one hand, pointed to his guitar with the other. "Yeah, I wanna ask you a question. It's five in the morning and my Sadie's asleep in the back; what do you need that thing for?"

Greg rubbed the back of his head. "It's… um, it's complicated."

"I've got time, Universe."

"Well, you know the, uh, the song that was playing with that big flash of light this morning?"

"There was a song?" She nodded slowly. "Yeah, yeah, I remember something like that. Forgot how it went, though. What about it?"

"That's just the thing. I need to go over there and record it before I forget it too."

"What are you gonna do with that?"

"I'm not sure yet. It's just… the Gems, they're in trouble. They need help. I've helped them before, with the Wailing Stone, but… it wasn't anything like this. I can't just sit here and do nothing, though; if there's anything I can do, I wanna do it!" He looked up. "I'm not making much sense, am I?"

"You lost me at the whale stone thing." Barb put a hand on his shoulder. "But hey, I get the gist. You do your thing, Greg. I'll keep an eye on your kid."

"Thanks, Barb."

"Oh, and one more thing." Her face darkened. "Wake up my daughter and you'll never see your mail again."

"Uh, sure. Don't worry about it. Thanks again!"

Greg waved as he made his way towards the gas station, humming a certain tune to get the chords straight in his head. He spared a look through the window at the bored teenager slouching behind the counter, then kneeled down behind the ice machine. He plugged his amp into the spare outlet and set it up to record what he was playing. He turned the volume down low, then plugged in his guitar.

It wouldn't be a great recording, but it'd be a recording all the same.

With a glance towards the van, he started tuning his guitar. Once that was done, he put his hands on strings and started to play what he'd heard that morning.

The corruption song. A wildly different version than the original, but clearly recognisable.

It was quiet now that he was playing it, too quiet for Steven or Peridot to possibly hear, but it still felt… dirty to play it. Like he was doing something he wasn't supposed to. Normally, playing his guitar made him feel happy, but there was no such feeling now. Not with this song, this song that had caused so much pain to his family, past and present.

As he played, he remembered.

He remembered asking Rose about the corrupted monsters, and that look she got in her eyes when she spoke about the fate of her fallen friends. He remembered Steven holding his leg, sobbing as the song played loud in the sky. He remembered Pearl, and Amethyst, and Garnet, missing in some distant place. The town, driven from their homes. Peridot in the back seat, staring at him.

He wanted to help, but he wasn't a Gem. He didn't know what corruption was, only what it left behind. But when Steven told them they shouldn't give up, he was right. He had to try.

He finished the last note, and let it fade out. At least he had a recording now. That was a start.

Sunlight was just starting to touch the top of his van as Greg made his way back; he was suddenly reminded of how tired he was. Rubbing his eyes and thinking of the hotel and the warm bed just another hour or so away, he opened the back of the van.

He was greeted by Steven's voice, sounding much more awake than when he'd left. "And then, we got to the house, and everything was filled with- _Daaad_!"

Greg winced. "I'm not that far away, Steven."

"Connie! It's Connie!"

"Your friend?" He put back his guitar. "Isn't it a little early or her to be up?"

"Oh, she usually wakes up around now, but she said she'd been trying to reach me all night after the-" He glanced at Peridot. "The thing. Um, anyway, she has Lion and she said she'll meet us at the hotel! Isn't that great?"

Greg saw his son's beaming grin, and couldn't help but smile himself. "That is pretty good news. So, should we get on the road again?"

"Yes please."

"Alright!" He jumped in the front. "Let's go…oh. Wait, sorry, I gotta fill up with gas first."

" _I thought you already did that_."

Steven and Greg froze, and looked at Peridot. Her voice sounded hoarser, lower, and she clearly noticed the change; her eyes widened, and then she scowled and looked away. Steven put a hand on her shoulder, but she shrugged it off.

Greg cleared his throat. "And… you're right! I just, uh, forgot. Sorry."

"That's okay Dad! We can go in and get some snacks! Hey Connie, do you want anything?" There was a little chatter on the phone, and he nodded. "Alright, see you soon! Connie wants apple juice."

"Sounds good, Schtu-ball!" He opened the door, and spared a glance at Peridot before getting out. She looked deep in thought, her hands absently covering her mouth.

"Let's go, Steven. We got a hotel to get to."

* * *

"Rooms for twenty-something, please!" The hotel manager looked up from her drink to see a large crowd of people coming into the lobby, and tried so hard not to do a spittake.

"Twenty? Um… uh… do you have a booking?"

"No, the phones were down all day yesterday."

She tore through the papers on her desk. "Well... um… actually, yes, we do have some rooms… um, they won't be next to each other, but-"

That's okay." One man came over and put a credit card on the desk. "Just bill it to my bank and make sure everyone gets a bed. We're all really, really tired."

There were general murmurs of agreement amongst the crowd, some of which sounded suspiciously like snores.

"Oh, okay! Right this way, please!" She motioned them through with a wide-eyed stare. Wait, why was one of them green? "I'll give you the… keys…"

A kid in a pink t-shirt high fived her. "Thanks, hotel lady!"

"You're… welcome?"


	5. Chapter 5

_Yesterday_

Connie was reading outside when the flash came from the sky. She heard the sound, covered her eyes, let it fade… then phoned Steven.

It didn't ring. She tried again, nothing.

"Lion?" Connie found him in the garage, the only place her parents would let him stay. He opened an eye and stretched when he saw her. "Lion, there you are. I think something magical happened and I can't get a hold of Steven; we've gotta get to Beach City!"

Lion closed his eyes.

"Lion? Lion!" Connie fished in her pocket. "Do you want some Lion Lickers? Here!"

She gave him some snacks, which he promptly ate… and then flopped on his side. He raised his paws up in the air and stared at her.

"No, there's no time for bellyrubs!" Connie tried dialing Steven again, but it went straight to an automatic message. "Come on, Lion, it's Steven! What's the matter with you?"

She tried pushing him to his feet, which worked just as well as one might expect with a fully grown lion. Finally, she stood up.

"Well, I'll get there without you! Just let me phone my… mom."

Lion blinked as she did just that, hoping to get some sort of response. There was none, and when she looked closer she could see her reception bars were going crazy, flashing from none to full to anywhere in between. Whatever had just happened completely knocked it out.

Connie frowned. This was bad… did something happen to Beach City?

With a cold feeling of dread, she turned back to Lion, who was still staring at her with that impassive expression. "Do you… know something I don't know? Is that why you're not taking me back?"

Lion just yawned, and Connie sighed.

"I wish you could talk. Anyway, I'm gonna see if the TV still works."

It didn't, and she sat there with the sword on her lap, staring at the fuzz. She tried Steven once more.

Absolutely nothing.

Connie sank back into the chair. "Oh, Steven, I hope you're okay."

So she sat in the living room and waited for her parents to come home. The first car she saw was her father's, which was strange; usually he worked late into the night.

She ran out to meet him. "Dad?"

"Connie!" He waved. "I was trying to call you, let you know I'd be home early, but the strangest thing happened! My phone-"

"Didn't ring? That was happening to me too!"

"Connie, you know what we say about interrupting people." He spread his arms wide. "Anyway, the strangest thing happened in Ocean Town today. There was this huge flash in the sky, it-it was like a bomb went off or something! Everybody's standing around all confused, and then it comes out that they're preparing for an evacuation!"

Connie looked at Lion, curled up on the garage floor. "They're evacuating?"

"Yeah! Sounds pretty serious, and they told all out of town employees to go home. So that's why I'm home early!"

"Did you hear anything about Beach City?"

"That place where your friend lives?" His eyes widened, as if he hadn't considered that. "I'm… not sure. Did you try calling him?"

"I did, but it didn't go through. And the TV's just showing static!" She moved towards the car. "Dad, we've gotta find out what happened!"

"What? Oh, no, young lady. If you think I'm driving you into an active evacuation zone, you've got another thing coming!"

"But Dad-"

"I'm sure Steven and his family are fine. He's got those three moms looking after him, right?"

"But-"

"No more buts." He opened the door. "Come on, Connie. Let's wait until your mother gets home, and then we'll decide what to do."

Connie sighed. Lion was still sleeping… so how bad could it be?

She sat in the living room and called him all through the night.

* * *

"So you're there?" Connie petted Lion as she talked on the phone. "Where did you say it was again? Oh, great! Awesome! See you soon!"

She hung up with a smile. It was so nice to hear his voice again, to know that he was okay. After everything he told her that morning…

Lion nuzzled her, and she nearly fell over. "Haha, okay, okay! Let me just grab the sword before we leave."

She ran into the living room and picked up the huge pink sword, then slung it over her back. Her mother looked up from her newspaper.

"You've got your phone?"

"Yes, Mom."

"And your first aid kit?"

"Yes, Mom."

"And you can't come home too late. It's a school night."

She shuffled towards the door. "I know, Mom. I love you."

"Wait." She walked over and started tucking in her shirt. "That's much better. Anyways, do stay safe. I love you too."

"I will. See you later, Mom!"

Connie waved as she closed the garage door, then turned to Lion. "Alright, I'm ready. To the hotel!"

Lion turned to her, his eyes glowing. Minutes later, they arrived at the address Steven had given her. It wasn't a particularly remarkable building, being tall and brown with a parking lot out front. She spotted Mr Universe's van near the entrance.

Good. She was in the right place. She slid off Lion's back and walked into reception.

"Oh, hello." The woman at reception seemed largely unfazed by the pink lion and giant sword Connie had brought to her desk. "Room 55, right?"

"Uhh… yes, actually. How'd you know?"

"Little boy wouldn't stop talking about you while I handed him the keys." She itched her nose. "Said you'd come with a lion and a sword, and with everything I've seen this morning? I only half thought he was joking. I tell you, before I die, I have to take a vacation to Beach City."

Connie didn't know what to say to that. "It's very nice there?"

"I'm sure it is. Anyway, the elevator's on your right. We're not a pet friendly hotel, so your pink lion friend's gonna have to stay outside." She picked up a mug sitting on her desk. "Heh. Pink lion friend. I need some more coffee."

Connie didn't know what to say to that either, so she opted to go upstairs and meet Steven. One short elevator ride later, and she was at his door.

She knocked. Nobody responded at first, and she made to knock again when there was a shout of, "Coming!" from the other side. The door opened to reveal Steven; he was a little more disheveled than usual, but other than that he was fine. He was okay!

"Steven!"

"Connie!"

They wrapped each other in a hug, laughing. "Oh, I'm so glad you're okay!"

"It's really good to see you again!" He said with a grin. "We've gotta keep it down, though. My dad's sleeping."

"Oh, sorry."

"It's okay. Come in!"

He opened the door a little wider to let her through, and Connie found herself in a rather comfy hotel room. Two double beds faced a TV, one of which was occupied by Steven's dad. He was snoring, sprawled out across the covers, still wearing his day clothes. To the side was a little door with the 'do not disturb' sign hung on the handle.

"That's the bathroom," Steven explained when he caught her looking in its direction. "Peridot's in there. You'll probably have to go back to reception if you need the bathroom. Sorry."

"Oh, okay." She sat down on the other bed. "So, Steven-"

"I almost forgot!" He ran over to the fridge and passed her a little juice box. "I got you your apple juice. From the gas station, not from here; my dad says there's no faster way to spend ten million dollars than on the hotel minibar, haha."

Connie raised an eyebrow. "Thanks. So-"

"Do you need anything else? Water? Snacks? We could order room service, my dad says-"

"Steven?"

"Yes?"

"Are you okay?"

"What? Oh, I'm fine! Why would you say that?"

"You're acting strange. And after everything you told me on the phone, I just wanted to know how you're holding up." She put her apple juice down on a table. "I'm here if you need to talk."

Steven's smile disappeared, and he sighed. At that moment, however, his father let out a loud snort and rolled onto his front, muttering something about shoes. Steven and Connie tried their hardest not to giggle.

"I'll tell you on the way, Connie." He stood up and went over to the bathroom door. "Peridot?"

No response. He knocked. "Peridot? We're going to look for the Gems with Connie and Lion, do you wanna come? It'll be fun, but… it's also okay if you want to be alone." A pause. "Okay. We'll be back."

Steven frowned and walked away, and Connie followed, casting one last glance at the bathroom before she left.

* * *

They were walking across the parking lot when Steven stopped dead. "Lion?"

Lion, who was curled up on the warm tarmac, raised his head and stared at him.

"Lion!" He ran to the Lion with tears in his eyes and buried himself in his mane. "I'm so glad you're okay! I was so worried, and then Connie said you were okay, and-and I missed you so much! Did you miss me? Blink if you missed me!"

He gently blew on Lion's face, which made him blink several times and turn away.

"Aww, I knew you missed me!" He smiled and wiped his eyes. "Anyway, Lion, we've got a mission. Take us to the nearest warp pad! Come on, Connie!"

"I'm right behind you!"

Once the two were sitting securely on his back, Lion stood up. He started moving, first at a trot, and then into a full sprint.

Connie hung on tight to Steven. "Where exactly is he going?"

"I don't really know! We'll see!"

He roared a portal into the air and jumped through it. Instantly it was much colder, much windier. She was on a small circular platform, rising up from the sea. Warp pads were scattered around the platform, and lining the circumference were tall, thin spires.

"The Galaxy Warp!" Steven jumped off and hugged Lion. "Good thinking, my feline friend! Is anyone here? Garnet? Amethyst? Pearl!"

Connie hung back, looking around. "What is this place?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah, I don't think you've been here before!" Steven hopped up onto the central warp pad, much larger and more elaborate than the others. "It's the Galaxy Warp; Gems used to be able to travel all around space on these warp pads! Well, now they're broken, so they can't, but they used to!"

"Wow…" She stepped up on one of the broken warp pads. "I mean, I knew the Gems were from space, but it's still so cool to think they've actually seen other planets! I wonder what it's like out there."

"It's really different." Steven said, and Connie remembered he didn't have to imagine. "It's… colder, it's quieter, and there's no trees or grass or, well, anything, really. Just a bunch of Gem buildings and Kindergartens, everywhere you look. And that was what they wanted to do to the Earth."

"Oh." She thought for a few moments. "But that's why the Crystal Gems fought, right? To protect the Earth, so it didn't become like that."

"Yeah… but they're coming back again, and this time… they don't have my mom." He hunched his shoulders, seeming so much smaller than he did before. "How am I supposed to protect the Earth, all by myself?"

"Steven…"

"I couldn't protect Garnet, Amethyst and Pearl. And now they're out there, somewhere, probably… probably corrupted." Tears formed in his eyes, and he wiped them away. "They needed mom's shield really badly, and I wasn't there."

"That's not your fault! There's no way you could have known it was going to happen."

"I know." He sniffed. "I just… wish I could have done more, you know? Everything happened so fast, and now I don't know what to do. I don't know how to help."

Connie put a hand on his shoulder. "I'm sorry, Steven. I don't know if it helps, but… I'm here. You don't have to figure this out by yourself."

Steven smiled. "Thanks, Connie."

From behind, Lion put a paw on his hair.

"It looks like Lion's here for you too."

"Aww, he really does care about me." Steven reached out and petted his mane. "I'm really glad you're okay, buddy. I was worried about you."

Lion's tail flicked, and he trotted towards the only intact warp pad. From there, he turned and looked at Steven and Connie.

"Looks like he wants to keep searching, Steven."

"Yeah, let's keep going." Steven hopped on the warp pad. "Hmm… where to go, where to go. Where do you want to go, Connie?"

"What about… the Sky Arena?"

"Oh, yeah! Good idea!"

The three of them warped away in a flash of light.


	6. Chapter 6

A cold breeze swept through the Kindergarten, stirring up plumes of dry grey dust. The dust hung in the air, giving everything a dull ashen tone. In the distance, something wailed; a person? An animal? Or just the wind, whistling through the endless rows of holes punched into the canyon?

The warp pad glowed. Steven, Connie and Lion appeared in a ray of light.

"Oh jeez, this place is always bigger than I remember." Steven took Connie's hand and jumped off the side of the warp platform, floating them to the ground. "We're gonna have to do a lot of searching. Should we split up?"

Connie made a face. "I don't know. Maybe we should stick together."

"Okay!" He cupped his hands to his mouth. "Garnet! Amethyst! Pearl!"

His calls echoed back at him: _Garnet! Amethyst! Pearl! Garnet, Amethyst, Pearl…_

Steven grinned. "Echo!"

 _Echo! Echo, Echo…_

"That's pretty cool." Connie took a deep breath. "Steven's the best!"

 _Steven's the best_!

"Haha, no! Connie's the best!"

 _Connie's the best!_

Behind them, Lion roared, drowning out all the echoes. Steven tried to stifle his giggles.

"You're right, Lion. We're on a mission. A mission!"

 _A mission! A mission… Grrrrrraaaaaaaaa_!

Connie blinked. "Whoa. Did you hear that?"

"Yeah. What was that?"

They listened, and heard a scream echo through the canyon. Their smiles disappeared.

"Uh… where did that come from? Steven?"

"I think it came from this way! Come on!"

He took Connie's hand and took off running in the direction of the noise, Lion bounding alongside him. Another scream: louder, closer.

"We're going the right way! Hold on!"

They were coming up to a corner. Now they could hear more than screams; there were growls and whimpers, and the sound of people talking.

"Go away!" Said one very familiar voice. Peridot? "I don't know what you are, but this is a very important mission from the Diamonds! You five, do something!"

"We can't!"

"It's separated us!"

"We're doomed!"

"Oh, what strange situations we find ourselves in!"

"Wait…" Steven slowed as he reached the corner, and peeked around it. The first thing he noticed was something purple and white on the ground. It was hard to make out what exactly it was, but there was a thrashing tail and two claws pawing against the walls of the Kindergarten. It sorta looked like those Jasper monsters he'd seen in the snow, only smaller.

With a sinking feeling in his chest, Steven watched as it turned towards him, revealing the one clue that left him no doubt as to the monster's identity: A purple gemstone embedded in its fur.

"Amethyst. Oh, no."

She growled at him, and he saw the spots where her eyes used to be were taken by two pale purple horns.

"What is that? Over there!"

Steven looked up, and saw Peridot hiding in one of the holes. That was strange… but then he noticed her limb enhancers and her gem embedded in her shoulder. Then he saw the Rubies, each of them cowering in different holes not far off from the ground.

This was new. This was bad.

"It's Rose Quartz! What's she doing here?"

That was the Ruby with her gemstone in her eye. Steven grimaced.

"Oh, hey Eyeball. Nice to see you again?"

"Don't talk to me, Rose Quartz!" Eyeball stabbed a finger at her, which might have looked more impressive if she wasn't clinging to the Peridot's leg with her other arm. "I don't know how you got off Homeworld, but as soon as we drive off this creature, we'll put you right back where you belong!"

"Yeah! We've done it before, and we'll do it again!" Navy chimed in from another hole. Amethyst lunged for her, and she jumped back. "Eep!"

Connie drew her sword. "They're Homeworld Gems! What do we do?"

"They're stuck." Steven looked from Amethyst to the Roaming Eye ship parked not too far away. "I think we can win, but we've got to be careful about this."

"Who's Rose Quartz? Ugh, nevermind, we've got to focus on the mission!" The Peridot said, in a striking moment of déjà vu for Steven. "Fuse already and take them out, you clods!"

"We can't!" Leggy wailed. "I'm scared!"

Steven walked towards the ship, keeping a close eye on Amethyst. She tracked their movement, growling, but stayed where she was. "Do you need any help?"

" _No_!"

"We know your Crystal Gem tricks!" Doc crossed her arms. "You're just going to try and distract us with some stupid game! Well not this time! This time, we'll beat you!"

"Yeah!"

"And we're not on the Moon Base, so you can't throw us into space again!"

"Yeah! Gravity!"

The Peridot rolled her eyes. "I should have requested a Jasper escort."

Steven took another step, and that was one too close for Amethyst.

"Steven, watch out!" Connie pulled him out of the way as she charged at him, claws extended. Amethyst missed him by a hair's breadth, but her head snapped around to face him as she barreled past. She opened her mouth and extended her tongue – one long, purple-studded whip - which wrapped around Steven's shin and pulled him off his feet. She swung him once around and then released, sending him flying towards the wall.

"Whoa!" Steven activated his floating powers, just in time to stop himself from cracking his head against the canyon. "Wait! Amethyst, stop, we don't want to fight you!"

But Amethyst turned towards Connie and lashed out again with her whip. Connie slashed it off with the sword and she let out a squeal of pain. Then Lion roared, knocking her away.

"Amethyst!" Steven let himself fall to the ground, but when he picked himself up he spotted another problem: the Rubies had taken advantage of the fight to jump down and band together. He watched them fuse in a burst of red light as the Peridot ran towards the ship.

"There's no escape this time, Rose Quartz!" The Ruby fusion said, towering over him. "You're coming with us!"

She reached towards him with one massive hand, and Steven… stood there.

Frozen. Terrified.

What was he going to do? How was he going to get out of this? He had to move, he knew this, but his muscles didn't so much as twitch.

"Steven, watch out!"

Steven turned. "Connie-"

A flash of purple, and something slammed into him. He felt himself getting carried along, and when he opened his eyes, he saw the front of his shirt was being held in Amethyst's jaws. Just below him was the ground, flying past him to the steady beat of her paws.

"Amethyst? You-" The monster started at his voice and dropped him, letting him tumble to a stop – ouch, that was sure to add to his growing pile of bruises. He sat up and smiled at her. "You saved me."

She cocked her head, whining. He reached a hand towards her.

"Do you remember me? It's okay if you don't. I'm-"

"Rose Quartz! There you are!" The Ruby fusion caught up to them, and Amethyst yelped and ran off. "I don't know how you managed to escape us again, but this time I'm sure we'll get you." She paused. "Yeah, I'm sure. What are you talking about? No, we're not getting thrown into space again. Wha- no, guys, focus! Wait, where'd she go?"

"Connie!"

"Steven!"

They linked arms, and turned around to look at the fusion. "Are you ready?"

"Let's do this!"

A bright pink light enveloped them, and they fused into Stevonnie.

"Whoa." The Ruby fusion shook her head as they summoned their shield. "No more tricks! Let's fight!"

"I'm ready when you are!"

She charged at Stevonnie, footsteps thundering through the canyon. They jumped up as she swung a punch and landed on her knuckles, running up her arm and drawing back their sword arm for the finishing blow-

A bright light in Stevonnie's peripheral vision caught their eye, and they turned their shield towards it. Not a moment too soon: a beam bounced off the pink surface and right into an injector perched on the side of the canyon. It exploded, knocking them back and sending them to the ground with their ears ringing.

Stevonnie groaned, letting the ringing sound fade. Then they shook their head, grabbed their sword and got back up.

"Nyeh heh heh!" The Homeworld ship floated around the Ruby fusion's head, Peridot's voice cackling out of its speakers. "You're clearly outnumbered!" She dodged a thrown shield. "And outmatched! This is just pathetic. Give up already, you clods!"

Lion came bounding over to them, but Stevonnie could see this wasn't enough. They weren't enough, not with both the Roaming Eye and the five-Gem fusion towering over them… maybe if they made an injector fall on them? No, the Ruby fusion was just too big. They needed another approach.

No, wait, they could make it! They had to keep fighting!

With a flash of light, Stevonnie split apart. "Steven, no!"

Steven raised his hands. "Wait!"

"No more waiting, Rose Quartz!" She raised her foot. "You're just trying to trick us again!"

"No tricks! I think I know what your mission is: you want to check on the status of the Cluster." Steven sighed. "Look, if that's all you came here to do… I won't fight you. I'll let you do it. Just leave us alone, please."

"What?" The ship floated closer. "How did you know-? I mean, ahem, I will not confirm or deny whether that is our mission, but if that was… how in the stars did you manage to get your little Earth hands on such classified information? Have you been spying on us?"

"No, no-"

The Ruby fusion rolled her eyes. "Who cares? Let's just take her back to Homeworld and then do the mission."

"And why exactly would I be taking orders from you? I'm the mission commander, and I say the actual mission takes priority!"

"But she's tricking you! Arghh!"

"It's not a trick!" Steven couldn't quite meet Connie's eyes. "We just… don't want to fight anymore. I saw you were in the Kindergarten, so I thought you might be here to check on the status of the Cluster. If that's all you're here to do – you're not going to abduct anybody, or reactivate it, or anything else – then… fine. Do it. Just leave us alone."

They watched the ship slowly float to the ground. The door opened, and the Peridot stepped out. She cleared her throat.

"As mission commander, I find these terms of surrender acceptable. Now leave us, and don't come back."

Steven bit back a protest at the word 'surrender', opting to back away from the ship. He finally caught Connie's eye; there were so many emotions, so many thoughts swirling in them, but she glanced back at the Homeworld Gems and decided this was a conversation to be had later.

The Ruby fusion, on the other hand, had no such restraint.

"You can't just let them go! They're traitors! That's Rose Quartz! You know, the leader of the Crystal Gems?"

"I don't know who she is, and I don't care. She's not relevant to our mission."

"She shattered Pink Diamond! She tossed us into space! She didn't tell us where Jasper was!" The Ruby fusion stabbed a finger at Steven as he retreated. "This isn't over, Rose Quartz! You're coming back to Homeworld with us!"

"Hey!" The Peridot stabbed a finger at her. "You five. Defuse."

The Ruby fusion clenched her fists, but did what she was told. Five figures appeared in the dirt; three of them up and ready to fight, two curled up next to each other.

"That's better. I swear, all you Rubies ever want to do is pick fights." The Peridot stopped in front of Leggy, who had latched onto Navy's arm. "Bunch of dumb soldiers. Get up! We've got work to do. And what are you looking at?"

Steven jumped. "Um…"

"Leave us! Go, go, go!"

Steven, Connie and Lion obeyed, letting the Homeworld Gems disappear into the fog behind them. Connie sheathed her sword with a sigh.

"I guess we're going home now."

"Almost. We've still got to find Amethyst."

"Amethyst? I saw her run away, but I don't know where she went."

Steven headed towards a small hole level with the ground. "I think I do."


End file.
